New Mexico Postcard -- Epilogue

On January 14 we packed  our belongings in my tiny Mini Cooper and  drove away from Taos, ending my wonderful four months as a writing recluse. We drove over the mountains and through the snowfields to stop at Chama for a warm drink and a picnic in the tiny public park by the railroad yard.

Chama is an old railroad and lumber town, now turned to tourism, but only in the summer and fall so we had the town pretty much to ourselves. After some asking around we found a small cafe  and got our warm drinks.This is a photo of the clock in the center of town.

Refreshed from the stop, we headed straight west to Farmington (oil town) for the night, and early the next morning left New Mexico for good (well, not really, but for now).

We crossed right into the Navajo Reservation, and took a detour into the Four Corners National Monument, where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona meet at a single point. Here is a photo of Jonathan and me with a foot in each state.






We took another detour through the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert National Park and on to Canyon de Chelley National Monument. What a full day!

 Here is photo of the of Spider Rock, the most photographed rock formation, out of the many other  rock formations. 

Canyon de Chelly is amazing, but just a teaser for the grandeur of Grand Canyon. January is a great time to see the Canyon, since we had the park almost to ourselves.

Here is one photo, but there are plenty more on my Picasa album. 

After two days in Grand Canyon we headed straight to Oakland. It was a wonderful trip, and a wonderful way to conclude my Taos journey.